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Does This Video Show Guns Used In The Manipur Conflict? No, Video Is Circulated With False Information
Manipur, 10 May 2023 10:13 AM GMT
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The video in question is a gaming video from 2020 created by an Instagram user 'Instagram user: @threatty_. It has nothing to do with Manipur violence.
A video showing people firing from assault rifles indiscriminately in the sky is going viral across social media. The video is going viral with the claim that it depicts a particular community in the conflict that occurred in Manipur.
The clashes in Manipur broke out on May 3, 2023, after the Manipur High Court asked the state government's views on a 10-year-old recommendation to grant ST status to the Meitei community.
Tribal groups opposed this move, due to fears of a loss of job opportunities and the possibility of the Meiteis acquiring land in the hills, pushing the tribals out of their place. After a “tribal solidarity rally” on May 3 and 4 against the move to include the Meiteis in the ST list, led to violent protests, arson, and a death. The death toll has reached 60. In response, the government has deployed the army to regain control of the situation.
Claim:
The viral video shows two persons firing from what appears to be assault rifles. The people fire in the air rapidly.
The video is shared by Twitter user Walmart Banana with the claim, "Here is a video of Kuki people firing shots at Meitei people .Is this what you guys called a peace rally and trying to be the victim #manipurisburning #manipur_on_fire"
A Twitter user, Pawan Boxer, who as per his Twitter bio, is the former state secretary of the National Students’ Union of India, the student wing of the Indian National Congress, shared the video with the claim, "This is not a film scene, it is Modi's double engine government in Manipur."
Fact Check:
We conducted a keyframe analysis with InVid's Keyframe Analysis to isolate the keyframes of the video. The reverse image search on the keyframes led us to a video posted on the Instagram account @theratty_.
The viral video in question was uploaded on July 5, 2020, with the caption, “Warzone”. The caption has tagged WorldStar, a content-aggregating video blog.
The caption carried hashtags such as: “#gaming”, “#justforfun” and “#pubg”, “#callofduty” — famous battle mobile/computer games. The location of the post has been set as Culiacán, a city in Mexico.
The post is in partnership with 'aexairsoftextreme'. We checked the About Us section on the AirSoft Extreme website.
Additionally another page on the Airsoft guns noted, "Airsoft guns are replica firearms that shoot a non-lethal 6mm plastic or biodegradable BB (however, they can cause serious injury if misused). Airsoft guns are generally the same size and weight with many features that replicate their real counterparts. Airsoft guns are used mostly in wargames similar to paintball and have been around just as long as paintball originating in Asia."
As per the website's About Us section, "Airsoft Extreme is internationally known as one of the oldest, largest, and longest-running airsoft companies in the United States. In addition, our professional staff includes experienced shooters, law enforcement veterans, and military veterans with combat experience. What also sets us apart from most other companies is that we are enthusiasts of the products that we sell, just like our customers."
An Instagram user commented on the matter saying that as per the creator’s knowledge that their video had been shared with claims of assault in connection to the Manipur violence.
Conclusion:
We found that the viral video is not from Manipur. The video in question is a gaming video from 2020 created by an Instagram user: @threatty_. Thus, the viral videos are circulated with false information.
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